Locker latch



F 21, 1 50 N. H. RUDOLPH 2,

LOCKER LATCH Filed Nov. 6, 1945 2 Sheeis-Sheet 1 ulllllllllllll 49 1&

Feb. 21, 195 R D LP 2,498,508

LOCKER LATCH Filed NOV. 6, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 21, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LOCKER LATCH Nathan H. Rudolph, Aurora, 111., assignor to All- Steel-Equip Company, a corporation of Illinois Application November .6, 1945, Serial No. 626,943

3 Claims.

cipal object of the invention is to provide a device -of this kind which permits the door of the locker,

or cabinet, to be closed and latched while the latch bar is locked in latched position.

It is customary in metal lockers to provide a vertically movable latch bar on the door and as the door is closed the inclined surfaces of one or more keepers on the door frame engage the latch bar to lift the bar and permit the catch on the latch bar to fall behind the keeper to latch the door in place. When a lock is provided it usually is arranged to engage the latch bar and restrain it from upward travel, thereby preventing the catch from being lifted over the keeper to unlatch the door. Obviously with this arrangement, if the latch bar is locked while the door is open, the door cannot be closed because of the inability of the latch bar to be lifted over the keeper.

In the present invention the arrangement is such that the latch bar may be locked against vertical movement without interfering with the closing of the door and the door is locked in closed position until the lock is released and the latch bar lifted over the keeper. This is accomplished by providing a pivoted catch on the latch bar which rides over the keeper when the door is closed and maintains the door latched until the bar is raised to release the catch from the keeper, and it is one of the objects of this invention to achieve this purpose with simple, inexpensive, quiet and fool-proof mechanism.

Further and other objects and advantages will become apparent as the disclosure proceeds and the description is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a perspective View showing a steel locker embodying a preferred form of the latch mechanism;

Fig. 2 is an end elevational view of the free edge of the door, parts being broken away to show the latch bar construction;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing the catch engaged by the keeper;

Fig. 4 is a view corresponding to Fig. 3, but illustrating how the keeper rotates the catch against spring tension when the door is being closed while the latch bar is in its latched position;

Fig. 5 is another view corresponding to Fig. 3, but in this view the latch bar has been lifted to disengage the catch from the keeper;

Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line 6-6 of Fi 2;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of the catch spring, and

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the catch.

A preferred form of the invention will be described in compliance with section 4888, R. S., but it will be understood that the invention may 2 be variously modified within the scope of the appended claims.

The prelocking latch mechanism of this invention is shown applied to a metal locker 10, having a door opening H, defined by a door frame l2 and adapted to be closed by a door 13, hinged at l4 and I5 to the door frame. The door is reinforced by a channel l6, and the free edge H of the door is formed into a semi-box section to serve as a guideway I8 for the latch bar, generally designated [9. The pocket, or guideway I8, is formed by bending the front sheet 20 of the door, first rearwardly, as at 2|, then laterally, as at 22, and then forwardly, as at 23 (Fig. 6).

A handle 24 extends through an opening 25 in the front wall .20 of the door, and is secured by screws or bolts 26 to the latch bar l9, which in the present embodiment of the invention, is U- shaped and operates within the guideway l8.

A lock 28 mounted in the door has a bolt 29, which is adapted to enter a cutaway portion 30 in the latch bar when the latter is in its lower, or latched position, to prevent the latch bar from being raised to unlatch the door.

The inner wall 22 of the guideway I8 is provided with slots 3|, and the latch bar with corresponding slots 32, to receive keepers, generally designated 33, mounted on the door frame l2. Located within the latch bar l9 at points corresponding to the keepers 33 are catches, generally designated 34, each of which is pivoted by a pin 35 to the latch bar 19. A spring 36 is also supported by the pivot pin 35 and it has a leaf spring arm 38, bearing against the catch 34 and urging it in a clockwise direction (Fig. 4), and another leaf spring arm 39' adapted to yieldingly limit rotation of the catch in the same direction.

The catch 34 is a small sheet metal piece having a web 40 pierced at 4! to receive the pivot pin 35, which may be a broad-headed rivet, as shown in Fig. 6, passing through the catch 34, spring 36 and latch bar l9, and the web 40 of the catch merges with a transverse web 42 from which rises a lug 43 against which the spring arm 38 bears.

The keepers 33 each comprises a plate 44 which extends rearwardly into the door opening, then laterally toward the other side of the door opening, and then forwardly with a beveled keeper head 45.

When the door is closed, while the latch bar is in its lowermost or latched position, the upper beveled face 46 of each keeper 33 engages the bottom edge 41 of the coacting catch 34, thereby swinging the catch in a counter clockwise direction against the action of the leaf spring 38 to the position shown in Fig. 4, and then, upon further closing of the door, the web 42 of the catch rides over the top of the keeper head and falls behind the vertical face 48, as shown in Fig. 3. The catch is retained in this position by the spring 38 and the door cannot be opened until the latch bar is raised to the position shown in Fig. 5, in which position the catch will clear the keeper, thus permitting the door to be opened.

One particular feature of the prelocking latch bar of this invention is its quietness of operation. This is attributed to the fact that not only is the latch bar provided with rubber bumpers 49 at top and bottom, but also to the action of the spring arms 39 in yieldingly limiting the return of the catch 34 to its normal latching position after-it has ridden over the keeper head. The spring arm 39 tends to decelerate the rotation of the catch as it approaches the position shown in Fig. with the result that it is substantially noiseless in operation.

In' practice, the door is opened by inserting the key in the lock and turning the key to remove the bolt from the latch bar, after which the latch bar is lifted to open the door. Upon releasing the handle, the latch bar falls by gravity to its lower position and the key is then turned to reset the bolt in the latch bar. The key may then be removed so that any subsequent closing of the locker door will cause the door to be locked against reopening until the bolt is again removed from the latch bar.

Even if the latch bar is not prelocked the door may be closed with slight efiort and noiselessly by the action of the pivoted catches, this requiring much less efifort than when the latch bar itself must be raised to effect latching of the door.

Obviously, the invention may be embodied in many other forms, as for example, by having the latch bar carry the keepers and mounting the pivoted catches on the door frame. In this case, however, the entire mechanism would be inverted so that when the latch bar is raised it would cause the keepers to clear the pivoted catches.

I claim:

1'. A latching device for use with a door frame member and a cooperating door member including a keeper fixed to one of said members, a cooperating latch bar on the other of said members, a pivoted catch on the latch bar adapted to be swung about its pivot in one direction when first engaged by the keeper as the door is being closed and while the latch bar is in latched position, and then as the door is further closed and while the latch bar is still in latched position, to rotate about its pivot in the other direction to fall behind the keeper and latch the door, and. a leaf spring having one finger urging the catch about its pivot in said other direction and another finger for yieldingly limiting rotation of the catch in the same direction.

2. A latching device for use with a frame member and a cooperating door member includiIlg a keeper fixed to one of said members, a latch bar movably secured to the other of said members, a pivoted catch on the latch bar adapted to be swung about its pivot in one direction when first engaged by the keeper as the door is being closed and while the latch bar is in latched position, and then as the door is further closed and while the latch bar is still in latched position to rotate about its pivot in theother direction to fall behind the keeper and latch the door, resilient means for urging the catch about its pivot in one direction, and means for yieldingly limiting rotation of the catch in the same direction.

3. A latching device for use with a door frame and a door having an inwardly extending box flange comprising a notched keeper having an inclined face and secured to the door in spaced substantially parallel relation to the door frame, a latch bar movably mounted within the door flange, an angular catch pivotally secured to the latch bar for movement about an axis parallel to the plane of the door upon engagement with the inclined face of the keeper and spaced from the latch bar for permitting entrance of the keeper therebetween, and resilient means for urging the catch into latched position, the catch being shaped and disposed in such manner as to extend around at least a portion of the top and a side of the keeper when in latched position.

NATHAN H. RUDOLPH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,766,193 Schmitz et al June 24, 1930 1,923,903 Albach et al Aug. 22, 1933 

